Saturday 21st Jan @Losang Dragpa Kadampa Buddhist Meditation Centre Anxiety and stress are an increasingly common problem for people in our busy, modern world. These states of mind prevent us from experiencing peace and enjoying life. Meditation is an effective way to combat negative states of mind and create a sense of mental freedom. By ... Read more
The Four Noble Truths Meditation Challenge Jan 23rd-26th @Losang Dragpa Kadampa Buddhist Meditation Centre The Four Noble Truths encapsulate the essence of Buddhism, offering clear and simple solutions for solving our problems and improving the quality of our daily lives. These teachings are just as relevant for us as they were when Buddha Shakyamuni ... Read more
What was that all about? Sat 28th January 2023, 7.00pm- 8.30pm@ Losang Dragpa Kadampa Buddhist Centre Topic: Imagine being able to die with confidence, without fear, confusion, or the thought ‘what was that all about?’ Throughout their life, many people feel lost and have no clear direction or understanding what the real meaning or purpose of ... Read more
Amitayus Retreat Feb 4th-5th @Losang Dragpa Kadampa Buddhist Meditation Centre On this weekend retreat we have the opportunity to increase our lifespan, merit and wisdom, through the special meditation practice of Buddha Amitayus. Our human life is our most precious possession because it gives us the opportunity to improve ourselves and attain the supreme happiness ... Read more
If we wish to experience happiness and good fortune in our lives we need to accumulate merit. Merit, or positive energy, comes from positive actions and enables us to fulfil all our wishes including our spiritual wishes to improve our mind and attain enlightenment. The practice of offering mandalas is one of the best ways ... Read more
Buddha’s teachings reveal a blueprint that anyone can follow to improve their daily life and awaken their fullest potential. In Buddhism we find simple and practical instructions to help us deal with our day-to-day stress and worry, improve our relationships and increase our joy and happiness. Ultimately, if we wish, the Buddhist path will take ... Read more
Letting go moving on weekend meditation retreat@ Glenrock Lagoon Scout Camp Mar 3-5 On retreat we stop all forms of business and other activities so as to focus on a particular meditation practice. The retreat conditions at Glenrock Lagoon Scout Camp provide a perfect opportunity to relax, unwind & gain deep experience of meditation. The ... Read more
Mind or Mindfull? - Meditation day retreat@Losang Dragpa Kadampa Buddhist Centre, Mar 26th: 9.30am-4.30pm Do you find your mind is too busy at times? Do you wake in the night thinking too much or have a tendency to overthink situations? A busy mind can leave us feeling tired, stressed, anxious and unable to really enjoy our ... Read more
You could have fooled Me- Saturday nite dharma@ Losang Dragpa Kadampa Buddhist Centre April 1st 2023 The 1st of April is April fools day, however this is not the only day of the year that we can be fooled. Every day we are fooled by our own mind, from seeing a spider where there is ... Read more
This special fasting and purification retreat is performed in conjunction with the meditation practice of Thousand-armed Avalokiteshvara. Engaging in this retreat is very powerful for purifying negative karma of body, speech and mind and for pacifying strong delusions such as desirous attachment and hatred. It is also a special method for receiving the blessings of ... Read more
We dedicate most of our time and energy trying to avoid problems by making changes to the external world. However, the main cause of our unhappiness and difficulties cannot be found in external conditions. The main cause of our unhappiness and difficulties is the negative karma we have created in the past through performing harmful ... Read more
The purpose of this retreat is to deepen our experience of refuge. The foundation of the Buddhist way of life is to go for refuge - to Buddha, to guide us along the spiritual path to enlightenment; to Dharma (Buddha’s teachings), the opponent to delusions, the source of all our suffering; and to Sangha ... Read more
Our mind can be our greatest healer. Learn how to harness the power of the mind and actualize your potential for healing. On this half-day workshop, discover a simple, yet profound meditation to transform the simple act of breathing into a powerful healing practice. Discover for yourself the effectiveness of this meditation practice to improve ... Read more
Take a day out to immerse yourself in meditation and Buddhist teachings. Explore a specific topic in more detail at one of our monthly one-day meditation courses at held at our Centre or various locations throughout Newcastle
Day courses offer practical solutions to everyday problems of modern living and are suitable for everyone!
Courses consist of teachings and guided meditations. Refreshments are served between sessions.
In our busy modern life we lack the calm and stillness conducive to maintaining a happy and peaceful state of mind. To regain a balance people are drawn to peaceful and quiet places where they can withdraw for a short time and renew their energy – in short, they go on retreat. On retreat we devote our time to meditation and contemplation – it is a time to acquaint our minds with positive and meaningful thoughts.
“On retreat we stop all forms of business and extraneous activities so as to emphasize a particular spiritual practice. There are three kinds of retreat: physical, verbal and mental. We engage in physical retreat when with a spiritual motivation we isolate ourself from other people, activities and noise, and disengage from extraneous and meaningless actions. We engage in verbal retreat when with a spiritual motivation we refrain from meaningless talk and periodically keep silence. We engage in mental retreat by preventing distractions and strong delusions such as attachment, anger, jealousy and strong self-grasping from arising, and by maintaining mindfulness and conscientiousness.
If we remain in physical and verbal retreat but fail to observe mental retreat, our retreat will have little power. Such a retreat may be relaxing, but if we do not prevent strong delusions from arising, our mind will not be at peace, even on retreat. However, keeping physical and verbal retreat will help us to keep mental retreat, and for this reason Shantideva, in Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life, praises the first two kinds of retreat.”
Excerpt From: The New Guide to Dakini Land – Geshe Kelsang Gyatso
